The Princess' Promise
by felixhe3x
Summary: Naruto was haunted by a fragment of dreams that kept repeating. The dream about a period long before he was born yet so vivid that it felt like his own memory. What's the dream really about? A cruel story of boy-meet-girl.
1. The Prince of War

Disclaimer: Do not own Naruto or Type Moon

"When I rage, Heaven rages. Let my rage falls upon the land, as the lightning that split everything" Urd, Ah My Goddess.

000

"AKKHHHHHH...!"

Naruto woke up abruptly from the nightmare, drenched in tremendous amount of sweat as if he had been scorched. His heart was still beating against his rib cage like mad.

His unkempt blonde hair was swaying as he shook his head when abruptly, sharp pain prickled on his left shoulder as if he had been cut by a katana but when he checked it there was nothing visible on it, not even a scratch. However, the lingering pain of a sword cut remained firm, a proof that it was not just his mind playing a trick on him.

Looking down, his fingers were still trembling. His entire body was shaking. He could still feel the demon's bloodlust. It was like being torn and ripped apart. The sound of his shredding flesh and his breaking bones being crunched and eaten, the overwhelming stench of his bloods and pick organs, were still fresh in his brain. It was such an unpleasant feeling.

"Another one from that dream again." Still breathing erratically, Naruto noted.

It's been half a year, he'd been dreaming about strange fragments of dream. What didn't make sense to him was that it always revolved around the same man.

A blonde whose mien and constitution so identical to him it was eerie, as if he was actually him.

Climbing out of his bed, he moved to the cheap table near the bed. On it was a cup ramen that he started to prepare by filling it with hot water from the tap, then waiting for another three minutes for it to be cooked.

In his mind, Naruto understood that dream was just a manifestation of subconscious desire or memory.

_'Then how could I dream about something that I don't even know? Did I die fighting the Bijuu? Who was that Senju Toka? But the dream felt so vivid and real as if watching a movie from a first-person view. It was like watching my own memories.'_

Sigh. Did his sanity finally break?

Naruto slurped his ramen listlessly. His mind was still on his strange dream.

Breathing out as if trying to force the unnecessary thought disappear, he then reached out to a white file folder on the table.

"I'll look into it later" Shrugging off the thought, his eyes scanned through the content of the information.

His client wanted something from inside the Water temple. Something about a secret mentioning a way to ignore the law of gravity, a technique that was only possessed by the third Tsuchikage and his apprentices.

All his task was to obtain a scroll or a sample of it. In short, it was a mission of reconnaissance that was based only from a vague hearsay.

But instead of pondering about his objective, his mind was working out the identity of the mission's sender.

There's something suspicious going on about this mission. His client's identity was unclear and seemed very fishy. They probably send a request to him, a missing-nin, instead of going to shinobi village to reduce the risk of being betrayed by the villages itself, but if that was the only reason, it's making the situation even more dubious. He was, after all, a missing-nin, in other word, a traitor. Why would they trust something this big to someone which society labelled as the scum of humanity.

They contacted him via letter. Inside it was half the payment, which was quiet a hefty amount, and the detail of the mission, but there wasn't any time limit or how to contact them back if he did accomplish the mission. It's a take-it-or-leave-it offer. It's as if saying that they were watching his every movements.

And of course, their real intent of hiring him was unclear, while it stated it was a reconnaissance mission, doing a job for this kind of person or organization would never as simple as that. There would always be something underneath beneath what was visible.

But that was understandable.

It would be even more suspicious if his client came up to him themselves. To the world, the name 'Naruto' was the synonym of 'Monster'.

Thus, there was only two types of client out there; one, the client who considered him as below their statures, he didn't deserve their audience, and two, the client who feared he was going to slaughter them.

Regardless, they wouldn't make the request face to face.

Naruto sighed before he got up and packed up his things before taking a quick shower.

Standing at the motel's door, he looked back at the dark room "Well, let's off to Mist then"

Exiting the cheap inn, the blond padded out to direction of Water country.

The day was still dark since the sun had yet to rise. As he threaded the long, empty road, his mind inadvertently wandered back to the strange, piece of dream.

000

The dark clouds streamed across the night sky, scarcely veiling the full moon and its silverly glow.

Panting hard, Toka tried to stay conscious for her genjutsu to hold on. But it was a futile attempt, her reserve was smaller than average to begin with, hence why she opted to use only genjutsu and a few minor technique, she couldn't maintain a technique for a prolonged period of time.

Her gaze began to twist and her eyelids suddenly got very heavy. Maintaining the genjutsu was becoming impossible.

The illusion that was hiding her like a black curtain started to waver. Her chakra was depleted almost to the point that it was making her difficult to breathe.

It was just dark and cold.

The cold winter hurt the back of her eyes.

A loud noises echoed from the entire area. In her clouded perception, an open field that was covered in red stretched as far as she could see. Arms and legs were scattered like wild flowers.

Toka couldn't remember why she was in here. Was it a solo mission? Or was it another war?

She didn't understand.

Then a man came to her. His katana was raised and swung downward.

Splat.

Warm crimson splashed over her beautiful face.

Someone had come and gotten ripped apart for her.

Red dribbled down and got into her eyes. The last thing she saw was a pair of blue eyes looked back at her. His face was stained so much with red she could barely see anything but his blue eyes that resembled a clear sky.

They were so... beautiful.

000

When Toka realized, she was lying on a hospital bed.

The curtain of the window was waving back and forth. A warm breeze brought the smell of the sun from outside.

Everything she saw was impeccably white. The room she was in was divided into two sides which were filled with empty beds. She was placed at the end of the room, getting herself a privilege to the view of outside the window.

The emptiness of the white room made her feeling like she was the only one left in the entire world.

She had woke up for quiet sometime but there was no doctor or the nurse came up to check on her.

"A poison apparently got into your system. So you might feel a bit disoriented for a while but aside of that there is nothing dangerous."

A man with spiky blond hair walked in to her room and said to her. He had a bandage all over his torso.

"Ah this, I just got injured in my left shoulder. Nothing fatal though" He said with a friendly smile.

"Why am I here?"

Toka asked the question since there was no one for her to ask this apart from him.

"Huh?" The man tilted his head and sounded a bit stupid.

"Why am I here, in this hospital? Do you know?"

"You don't remember?" His blue eyes narrowed slightly as he frowned. "Look outside. You'll understand it faster that way."

Feeling something was wrong, she opened and looked down at the distant ground.

It was a riot. Down the street was packed with throng of people, packing and trying to leave in disorder. The atmosphere felt very tense and heavy, contrasting with the good weather outside.

"What is everyone doing?"

The man shook his head as if sighing from the bottom of his heart. "They're evacuating, obviously. Last night, Iwa invaded the border of Hi no kuni. You were also caught in that invasion, remember? This town is just ten thousand meters away from there"

Toka started feeling very sick. Her head was pounding as memories rushed in.

"You were on your way back after a mission to your clan"

She remembered. Her team had been in a small town to rest for a night. Then suddenly, the attack came and everything afterward was blurry.

"My squad! What happened to them?"

"They didn't make it." The man shook his head in grief "The entire town was annihilated last night"

Her throat was burning. Something bubbled from the pit of her stomach. "O-only, I survive?" Closing her eyes, "I-I want to be alone for a while. Can you please leave?"

"No," He rejected her request bluntly, "There is no time for that"

"What?" Toka looked at him with incredulity. She was a patient in here, it was her right to have a rest.

"Have you been listening to what I said? The whole town was annihilated along with everyone in there"

Feeling irritated, she frowned, "What are you trying to say? That I can't get a moment alone for myself? That my teammates' death don't matter?"

"You don't get it, do you? The whole town was destroyed, along with _everyone_ there. Think! Why would an invasion army would destroy a place that could be their focal base?"

Toka didn't get it. Why couldn't he just say it directly instead of this roundabout way of talking as if she was a child?

"In the midst of the battle, a bijuu came along and burned everything to ground. Both forces, Iwa's and Fire's, along with the civilians were swept away like they were nothing. I and you are the only survivors. Counting its progressing route, it will pass through this town at midnight."

Despair was the words to explain their situation, helplessness was another.

"So that why they are so desperate"

"We have to go too but not right now. After the commotion down there dies down, we'll head to the capital city, straight away" The stranger talked as if she was a friend of his.

Suspicious. Everything about the whole situation was suspicious. If what he was saying was true, how were they the only one to survive?. He said this town was ten of thousands meters away from the ground zero, how could they cover that distance and arrive here after fighting in the invasion and fleeing the bijuu? Why was he talking to her in a friendly manner? And why should they go to the capital city instead of heading back to her clan?

Everything didn't make sense. Who was he again?

Her eyes then settled on something beside his waist.

An elegant katana whose scabbard was made from a beautiful dark material and decorated with dazzling gold enamel. It was the sort of luxurious weapon that should be called a treasure to show its outstanding radiance of nobility and dignity, like a crown or a scepter as opposed to a mere katana. But even more than that, the number 'Two' and a symbol of Hi no kuni that were engraved in the middle of it was what caught her attention.

"Oh this..." The man picked up his weapon light-heartedly "I don't really use it though so it's a bit useless to me but they insist to carry it with me the whole time. Why do you look so shock? Did the vestiges of the poison act up again?"

Crossing his arms, he said in an assured manner.

"Come to think of it, I haven't introduce myself, have I, Toka of Senju clan. My name is Namikaze Nanashi, the number twelve of The Twelve Imperial Guard of Hi no kuni. Well, it's by some link of fate that we met, don't you think so?"

"Eh?" Toka let out a voice.

The Twelve Imperial Guard of Hi no kuni.

The royal guard under the direct command of the Daimyo. They said each member has a strength of at least a thousands shinobis.

But why did he say he held the twelfth seat when his insignia showed the second?

The last time Toka recalled, the owner of the second seat was a female. Did it mean that he was a fake?

But if he was a fake, they couldn't be possible to survive last night. And the fact that they were still alive was the all the proof she needed that he was a real Royal guard.

Her head suddenly hurt. The pounding resounded inside her brain like a massive headache.

Judging by how her condition right now, it was highly possible that she was in the wrong. Admitting that made the pounding receded a little, but Toka still couldn't help but staying to feel wary of him.

"Then what is the imperial guard want from me?" Toka asked the question that had been bothering her since the revelation of his identity.

"Oh that, I guess you haven't been told" Nanashi began "You've been chosen by the head of Senju clan for a political marriage with the Daimyo. Well, it's not really a marriage though, you won't have the right to be the wife but just one of the geezer's concubines"

"Huh?"

The ridiculous sentence was said in a strangely light-hearted manner.

"I guess your clan wants another assurance for their plan to make a ninja village. I can sort of understand them, though is it really necessary? The geezer already has more than 100 wives in his harem. So, it's sort of my job to escort you safely to the capital city. Why did they choose me though, the others have more of free time than me. Hey, you're okay? You look quiet pale."

"No, it can't be" Toka murmured absentmindedly.

"Sorry, what did you say?"

"No, no... It's impossible, I've never been told about this. There must be some mistakes!"

Nanashi sighed "Listen here Toka-chan, do you think I cut through the entire army of Iwa, meeting the bijuu on the way and save you because of some kind of a joke? No way!"

Toka was stunned. As someone from an elite clan of Senju, she had accepted her fate that one day she would be married to one of a high-class noble either to the royal family or someone in her clan, but not in this manner, this was just like throwing away a piece of garbage for the good of everyone.

"Hey, hey... Marrying the old geezer isn't such a bad thing you know. You won't have any problem with anything. You can pass your days just idling away, doing whatever you wants. Not such a bad life, right? Don't worry, I'll visit you every once in a while so you won't get lonely"

Toka really wanted to slap this man in the face but she controlled herself. Yes, she was disappointed but this was for the good of her clan, she couldn't do anything about it. She didn't know that she would get married this soon, she still had some uses to the clan. She was also one of the higher rank in Senju. It could only meant they got pretty desperate about making the ninja village if they sacrificed a precious pawn like her.

"I don't fancy in discussing about ifs. It's just useless."

"Really? I like talking about ifs. You don't know what will happen, but doesn't that make you feel that there is hope."

"Whatever..." Toka shrugged as if to reassure herself "So that means we'll leave after everyone evacuates safely right?"

"Huh, why?"

"Wha-! What do you mean by why, isn't it your duty to protect the civilian?" She raised her tone, outraged.

"My job is to escort you safely to the capital city. Do you ask me to fight the Bijuu head on? Isn't that the same as asking me to do a suicide?"

Two people who were fundamentally different contrasted with each other.

One was someone who couldn't think about tomorrow too seriously. Living a normal life, doing the same mundane things everyday, just being alive was happiness and fun in a sense. If he could help it, he wouldn't meddle with others' business unless it was something really unforgivable.

The other one was someone had a strict view of what was right and wrong. Happiness could only be achieved if everyone around her was also having fun, she was someone who wouldn't let others to die meaninglessly.

An upright person and a carefree person. It's only natural that both personalities clashed with each other.

"And you call yourself a man? Is your brain damaged or something?"

"Tsk, you're more uptight than what I've heard. Eh, pardon me, or was it upright? There's something strange with my head really"

"You just called me uptight didn't you?"

"Huh? Sorry, you said something? There's too much words, my head couldn't process what you just said. I think it's because my brain is damaged or something."

This sort of sidetracked argument went on and on until one of the remaining nurse noticed and ushered Nanashi out of the room.

When Toka finally alone, she was confused as how a conversation with him kept flowing out as if it was a common thing to her.

000

A tremendous roar trembled the white wall.

Nanashi run through the long corridor of the hospital.

It was dark, the electricity of this town had been cut off. The air was scorching hot even though it was winter. The temperature increased each minutes passed.

He had made a poor judgement. When dealing with a bijuu, he should had known that things could get bad to worse in a blink just as easy as flipping a coin.

He had underestimated the calamitous being and as such, his prediction was way off its target.

Don't mention midnight. Just an hour or two after the sun had set completely in the horizon, the line that separated the sky and earth was completely burned. A huge conflagration that seared everything. In an instant, the forest had transformed into a sea of flames.

Gritting his teeth, he increased his speed.

The frigid faces of the passing doors and the monotone echoes of his footsteps were mocking him. The white floors and walls rattled every now and then as if trembling in terror.

He reached to the knob of the last door.

Bang!

However the hospital room that could fit at most twelve patients was empty. The curtain of the window was flapping furiously.

"Dammit!" Nanashi spat out.

Another roar of the hellish beast was heard.

000

Chapter One

The Prince of War

"When I rage, Heaven rages. Let my rage falls upon the land, as the lightning that split everything"

000

The heat felt like melting her skin and flesh. Small earthquakes shook intermittently.

Another deafening roar that struck her soul boomed.

Everything in front of her was dark orange and crimson, the sight of sea of flames extended as far as she could see. Black smokes from the ashes of the forest were clouding the night sky like the bonfire smoke of a festival. In the middle of the sea of flames was the beast of hell, the four-tailed bijuu.

The titanic demon, that ruled over fire and earth, was only 5 km away.

The beast was at least a hundred feet tall. Looking at it from afar, it sported the appearance of a gorilla. Its fur that blanketed its body, instead of black, was pure crimson as if torched by the eternal flames. The four tails that were swinging behind the bijuu created a small tornadoes of flames that burnt everything with every strokes.

Its bright yellow eyes ominously fixed upon this small town. Every roar from its giant maw sparked fireballs. Everything around the bijuu was burning to ashes, to nothingness. Every time it moved, it provoked earthquakes and eruptions from the earth, throwing up a torrent of lava.

The dark world of night had been turned into red.

That beast was Yonbi no saru, the four-tailed monkey, whose mere presence itself seemed like scorching the entire world.

Massive bloodlust flooded over the entire town as if a dark ocean just fell upon them from the burning sky.

Absolute terror had thrust down their spines like a huge shard of ice. Their sanity was breaking apart. Deep inside their hearts that had been engulfed by absolute despair, death was becoming a very gentle escape.

As many as 5 men from the town that had the population of 500 had gathered here with the same intention with her, that was to somehow buy time for the people to evacuate.

Comatose patients, the disable, elderly people, pregnant women, abandoned children, war orphans, infants. Those people were the only one left in this small town along with a handful of people that had stayed behind to assist them. Their precious persons that might be among them had gave these five men a reason to still stand here in spite of the gruesome fate that awaited for them.

But what could they do against an immortal entity? It was as if they were walking up the stairs to the gallows. Toka was among those who waited for their execution.

Her genjutsu couldn't affect the bijuu, she had no technique in her repertoire to help her last more than a second. Even trying to not pass out from the fear was incredibly hard.

The burning flames, the bleakness of the situation and the vision of the gruesome death they would experience. Wasn't this exactly what people call as hell?

Another roar from the beast.

_Run! Run! Run! Run!_

The men around her were trembling from the terror, so much that they looked like they could die from the trepidation. Shadow of their own death filled in their brains.

_Gonna die! Gonna die! Gonna die!_

The breath of the roar burnt the atmosphere and blasted to the town like a shock wave. The clumps of the fire balls that floated in the air like millions of hell's fireflies was starting to start a fire in the town.

A loud explosion was heard and the ground shook.

Looking in front, the beast had leapt over a distance of 1 km in an instant and it wasn't stopping as it continued to head towards this town.

Boom! Boom! Boom!The deafening explosions from the leaping Bijuu.

"Get ready!" Toka shouted as she was the only one among them that still sane enough to give an order. Though shaking so much as if crying, the men gripped their weapons; bows, sword, kitchen knife or even a wooden pole, tighter, to resolve themselves not to run away.

They would perished instantly. That was an undeniable reality. It was applied to her too. Her weapon in hand was a mere kunai.

This what people called a foolish fight and they, of course, would die a painful death but it was not meaningless. Even a mili-second could save one person. The moment that was briefer than a spark of light could save their beloved. That simple reason gave them the courage to face the demon.

Toka was occasionally rebuked by her clansmen because of this sort of thinking. Shinobi was a profession that prioritized victory above anything, sometime they might use even a complete bystander to finish their mission. Her way of thinking obviously clashed with this principal. At that moment, she realized the reason why she had been thrown away like trash by her clan.

600 meters was the distance that separated them from the massacre. Another leap and it would arrive to the town.

Stiffening her muscle and gripping her kunai harder, Toka banished the useless thought and readied herself.

Boom!

Another booming explosion, and the four-tailed monkey jumped. At the same time, a huge shadow swept over the town.

Hot air felt like scorching her eyes.

Her gaze fixed at the demon in the mid air, suddenly...

Numerous pillars of golden streaked across the black sky like shooting stars.

Bam, Bam, Bam!

Those long pillars rained upon the demon and flung it backwards a couple of yards. Before the four-tailed could react, another pillar of light in a shape of a huge cross, hundreds times larger than the previous one, was next and shot across the burning night.

With a loud 'BOOM!', the cross of golden impaled the Yonbi and crucified it on to the ground.

A proud shriek of a bird echoed in the entire town.

Looking upwards, a gigantic hawk with its wing span over the length of the town was seen. On top of its head was a familiar blonde hair man. The serious look that didn't fit his image settled as his blue eyes fixed on the struggling demon.

Unlike the half-naked figure she saw before, now, he wore a domineering dark armor that befitted his status as one of the royal guard. A red sleeveless cape was fluttering in the dry wind behind him.

He pointed at the demon. Instantly, a golden vertical line stretched to the heaven behind him, then it expanded open like a gate. Another round of golden shots showered the bijuu.

Toka certainly had forgotten about him.

The Number 12 of the Royal Guard. The Prince of War. It's said he once annihilated the entire of the invasion army from Kumo singlehandedly by using this godly power. It was as if he commanded an entire army that only abided at his order. The ability that was only for the sake of war had given him the only meaning in life. That's why he was called the Prince of War because he was the man who was loved by the God of destruction and carnage.

ROAR!

The Yonbi trashed around to free itself. The earthquakes was getting heavier as the result. The ground cracked. Furious eruptions birthed a torrent of lava.

"Ten minutes!" Nanashi shouted "When ten minutes is over, whether you like it or not, I'll take you away from here!"

10 minutes was his limit.

This technique required a great amount of chakra to use. His bloodline was his blessing but also his curse. For using this godly technique, he couldn't use any other technique because his chakra was too dense with raiton and he had not yet found a way to use it for any simpler technique. Brute force was his only redeeming quality after all.

That's also the reason why he couldn't just force her to leave, she would resist him without doubt. If that happened, the choice was only two. Either annihilate this town with his bloodline or avoid using chakra to fight her.

But even if he succeed to kidnap her by force, it was already too late to run.

"That's why I told him this is a bad idea." He complained particularly to no one.

Suddenly, the beast grasped the huge pillar that nailed it and pulled it in one stroke. The four-tailed monkey gnashed its huge teeth at him. An immense bloodlust immediately washed over him.

"Oh brother..." Nanashi summoned another huge pillar and aimed it at the yonbi again.

This time, the darting pillar he shot was deflected easily by the bijuu.

"Looks like you're in trouble now, Nanashi-kun" His summon, Kazariya, said.

"Do you think I can't see that? I don't need your jibe right now, you overgrown bird. Wa-wa! Why you're flying like you're drunk! Okay, okay! I'm sorry!"

Fireballs were shot, aiming at them.

The hawk weaved through the air and dodged the scorching balls elegantly.

"I'll aim at its eyes, Kazariya, make time and opening for that!"

"How long?"

"As long as you can"

"Got it!"

Kazariya made a sharp turn in a blinding speed to dodge a torrent of lava shooting from the bijuu's mouth. The boss summon made another zigzagging fly, showing incredibly agility and precision at flying. He showed why he was hailed as the king of the sky.

The four-tailed let out another roar, irritated that it couldn't to hit the annoying fly. Then it swept its tails to the air.

A burning gust swept the sky. At the same time, a gigantic golden arrow flew and hit it on the right eye.

ROAR!

The bijuu let out a frantic huge fireballs to the sky as it roared in pain. Nanashi took this opportunity to shot another one. The collosal shaft pierced through its mouth cleanly and out from its back head.

"Bingo!"

Normal entity would die from this shot but his opponent was a bijuu, who had roamed this land for more than 1000 years. The wound instantly healed.

However it's enough. Now the bijuu's attention was fully at him, this was his aim.

"Oh shi-!" A spate of magma streamed to the sky. Kazariya made another sharp turn to evade it with elegant precision.

Another 3 minutes remaining for him.

"Kazariya-!"

"Why you're sounding so serious, Nanashi-kun? It's so unlike you."

"Your wing?" His eyes widened when he saw the burning on the left wing. The burning gust from before didn't damage him but it had sparked a fire on his feather.

"It's just a small burn, it's nothing for the king of sky. Now, what I have to do next is just to lead it away from the town, right?"

Below them was the sea of flames, and chasing them was the a a hundred-foot bijuu.

That what was Nanashi planned but that plan had expired. His summon wouldn't have the speed to outrun from the bijuu in this case, or worst, Kazariya couldn't take the burning anymore and fell. Even if there was a chance for his survival from such a fall, Kazariya had none.

"No, head back to the town now."

"But that means-"

"Just do it!"

Nanashi opened his gate from the thin air, and let numerous lightning spears bombarded the demon to give his summon an opening.

Slipping past the bijuu, the hawk flew to the town as fast as he could. The burning on his wing started to become unbearable.

"Thank you." Nanashi released his summon with that word of gratitude.

Jumping down, he landed on top of a burning building.

ROAR!

The bijuu ran towards him, its ominous eyes shown only the intent of squashing an irritating bug namely him, basking him with a tremendous killing intent that felt like coming from the depth of hell.

One and half minutes until his chakra depleted.

He did not have time to be swayed! If he wanted to survive, he had to risk his life.

Pouring all of his chakra and willpower, a huge gate with height equal to the bijuu opened.

BOOM!

A torrent of golden swords poured out like avalanche and clashed with the rampaging bijuu. The yonbi struggled to advance. It was a frontal attack that could b easily dodge but bijuu was a being that was controlled by its primal instinct, its low intelligence was its only weakness which was something Nanashi exploited.

The raining golden against the charging red.

At first, it looked like a stalemate but he was the one on the losing side. His body started to feel numb and his mind started to break apart.

The searing oxygen he inhaled was burning his throat and lung.

"UuuoohHH!" Nanashi poured every last bit of his power into the attack.

His skin felt like being roasted. Sweat was evaporated by the scorching heat.

No, no. He couldn't lose here. He couldn't die here.

His limit already passed since a minute ago. Right now, he was only clinging onto his willpower. He didn't even know why his attack was still running.

Splat!

His wound on his shoulder opened up. The crimson blood turned into red gas before even touching the ground.

Nanashi's focus began to twist. His attack finally ceased.

Falling down to his knees, everything in his vision was red and orange, melting.

Everything was melting, melting, dissolving into the swirling of red and orange. The burning night, the crumbling building, the incoming bijuu. Everything was distorting, the world was crumbling apart, pieces by pieces like a shattering glass.

He couldn't hold on anymore. Breathing out one last time...

Click! The sound of someone just switching off the light.

... Everything then went black.

The Prince of War had fallen.


	2. The Thespians of Destiny

Disclaimer: Do not own Naruto, The Myth or Type Moon

"All the pieces lie where they fell, where they wait for him." Kingdom Hearts- Birth by Sleep.

000

The white moon reigned over the starry sky.

The night, without a single shred of cloud, gave a perfect view of the sky. Winter wind blew every so often, sweeping over the vast field of grass like stroking gently a pet.

In the distance, a tall hill, that seemed to touch that moon, overlooked the entire open field.

Standing on the summit of that tall hill, hidden by multiple layers of genjutsu, was the fabled Water temple. There was only one narrow path to climb up, that was by using the spiraling, steep staircase at the side of the hill; the kind of staircase that ignored its user safety. Then, a rampart-like wall was erected around the temple, high enough to cut off the temple from the surrounding world.

The existence of the sanctuary, hidden so meticulously and guarded so thoroughly as if fooled even the nature, felt like an alternate dimension where fairies lived in, completely separated from the real world, only showing itself to its guest.

This fortress-like temple had been protecting countless of secrets and treasures of Land of Water, repelling innumerable invaders, for more than 500 years.

A proof of an untouchable indestructibility.

However.

On that night, with the glass-like moon that hanged up in the sky bore as the witness, the temple of Land of Water was massacred.

000

The night felt tremendously ominous and suffocating, as if foreboding of a bad presentiment.

Overhead, the distant moon looked very fragile as though it would shatter if touched and the entire sky would fall down.

A very unsettling feeling.

Was it a foul premonition or merely a fatigue?

It took him weeks just to realize the illusion and find the temple, spending most of the time running around in a circle like a headless chicken, but that was something that shouldn't be a problem for someone like him.

Weaving through the darkness of the night, Naruto moved through the temple.

From the outlay of the temple, he could confidently state that this temple was a stronghold. Buildings were built and stationed according to its uses, purposes and importances. The more central it was located, the more frequent patrolling monk could be found. There were 73 buildings in the compound, including a mere storehouse, shrine or even things people wouldn't expect to find in a temple like an arsenal and a holding prison.

Though it was just a deduction from his preliminary investigation of old documentations and hearsay, there shouldn't be much different from the real one. With certainty, he could say that this was one of the strongest citadel in the world.

Moreover, the building's structure wasn't vary but using a single, dull design. Every building was a perfect duplication of a big box; each wide, length and grid was a precise 10-meter, the only reference differentiating one building from another was the number laying a top of every entrance.

After memorizing the blueprint of the battle ground, there was the next important questions...

Where his objective would be and how he would search for it?

Should he use a kagebunshin to check all the buildings simultaneously? Or should he look in to the buildings one by one?

No.

Naruto shook his head. He shouldn't be doing either.

The former would attract to much attention. Monk had an unnatural ability to sense even the slightest chakra. He had been using only experience and basic skill so far, without even using chakra even once. That's why he still wasn't found out.

While the latter was taking too much time. It was too much risk to go around and check them one by one. Besides, he had been feeling restless since he stepped inside this temple. Like something bad would happen. If he could help it, he wanted to get away from here as soon as possible.

Feel free to call him a paranoid, but because he trusted this instinct that had saved him countless times in the last war, he was still alive and breathing right now.

And there was also the resident of this temple, the monk.

Just because they called themselves a monk, didn't mean that they were your conventional monk whose lives were dedicated for praying. This monk was the same group that had been protecting this temple for more than half a millennia. This was also the same faction that ignored everything outside their walls, even as far as letting the Bloodline Massacre happen, condemning their own country into a devastating dark age.

It wasn't that surprising if they acted more like a professional soldier than a monk, no matter how pious they were.

He bet most of them had more knowledge about water technique than an average jounin out there.

This was the true face of Water temple.

An impenetrable fortress that could shrug off even the siege of one of the Five Great Shinobi Nations.

"Yaaawn... Damn, I could hardly stay awake. How much longer do we have to watch this trifling storage?"

"Keep your focus, Sora! Even if this is only a storage, we have to do our duty with utmost diligence."

Around a corner, Naruto suddenly heard such conversation.

"Loosen up, Riku. When was the last time there was something happen in here? 10 year? 20 years ago? There's no one stupid enough to attack this temple. Even if there is one, there are more than 300 monks in here, it'll be an overkill."

"But we might not know what will happen. Anyway don't you dare to fall asleep."

"Akhh... if only the head monk assigned us to that building instead of this boring place, I will surely do my job with more enthusiasm."

"Don't dream about it. Rookie monks like us won't get a chance to get near into it. Only the elites could approach it."

"Yeah, such a pity. But the head monk is a bit paranoid, isn't he? To assign so many high-ranked monks to guard it. There's must be something important in there. Hey, wanna try to sneak in sometime? To the building no. 11."

"Don't speak of that word. It's forbidden." The kid named Riku hissed uncomfortably. "Just forget it. This is why you'll never get promoted."

_'Interesting. So there is a place that important. No. 11.'_ Naruto pondered that piece of information.

But wait, just because it was the most significant building didn't mean that the thing he seek for was inside that building.

_Hmm. What to do._

From afar, the sound of the bickering continued as it echoed in the night.

Peeking from the edge of his spot, Naruto looked at them. They looked like they were around 15 or 16 year old, 17 at most. From just one glance, he understood that they were inexperienced, and they confirmed it themselves.

A newbie with no experiences.

An easy picking.

After that was confirmed, Naruto decided...

"For being in such a right time in a right place. Isn't this just like a string of fate that we met? Curse your own luck, kids."

... that he would use them as sacrificial lambs for his mission.

"Ah, it's so boring. I wish something big happens. Hey, Riku. Do you hear me? Hey..."

Turning around, he saw...

"AKHHHHHHHHHH!"

000

Sora run.

Faster than his feet allowed him to, pushing beyond the limit of his body.

His breath was ragging as he fled like his life depended on it.

Or maybe that was the actual situation.

His back was cold as though a huge shard of ice had been thrust upon his spine.

He had to run.

If he wanted to live he had to run.

"Haah... haah..."

The pale, eerie light illuminated the dark back alley. The moon up above felt like observing him with sinister glee.

In his mind, there was only one place that he could be safe.

_That_ building.

He had to go to that building. If he wanted to survive, he had to go there.

Rushing through the stone path, he turned at a corner. From afar, a view of a building no different than any other building in the temple appeared, the only difference was that there was at least 50 elite monks guarding it.

The building No.11.

"H-HELP!"

The terrified adolescent yelled at the guarding monks.

One of the monk approached him.

"Sora, what happened?"

The monk had probably detected something not long ago but dismissed it as just his feeling. Why wouldn't he? Even in the last war, this temple was untouchable.

"I-intruder! H-he got Riku and-"

BOOM!

An explosion was heard.

Not a second later...

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A succession of explosions shook the entire temple. The walls of the structures trembled from the shock wave.

Then smokes came. Black smokes from different parts around the temple dispersed and clouded the sky.

Gong! Gong!

The deep echo of a gong being struck resonated in the air. It was the sound that wasn't even heard in the last war.

The alarm that was only used when the temple was under siege continued to resound throughout the night.

"Sora, where the last time did you see him?"

With a trembling finger, he pointed to the direction he had came from.

"T-the northeast area, where I was assigned to guard the food storage."

The monk nodded and signaled to his peer behind him.

"Stay here."

With that curt order, he and the others went off in hurry.

000

Numerous shadows surrounded a spot in the dark back alley.

About 50 in numbers. This was the first time in such a long time, so monk gathered around in one place other than for the monthly prayer.

Among them, one man, who was checking two unconscious boys, stood out. He was the head monk, the supreme leader of this fortress.

BOOM!

Another explosion was heard in the distance.

A monk ran to him in a hurry, cutting the mass of people as he did so.

"Report." The curt order seemed to vibrate longer than usual in the tense air.

"We have checked all around the temple. These explosion was caused by a timed explosion seals. As to who did it, we haven't found them."

"This could be just a diversion. Divide the entire personnel into 5-man team and continue to search for intruders."

"Understood." The monk nodded.

But before he turned around, he noticed something out of the place.

"The intruder got Sora? This is disconcerting, I thought I ordered Sora to stay near the No.11. I guess he came back for Riku. I don't know whether to call him stupid or brave."

The head monk tensed his muscle as though cold water was poured on to his body.

"Did you say you meet Sora before?"

"Yes, in fact he was the one who told us about the existence of the intruder, before the explosions went off."

"That couldn't be, because Sora and Riku should have been unconscious at around the same time."

"W-wait. Then that means..."

000

"Stay here."

After the curt order, the monk went to the direction he pointed by running, without giving a concern to him or checking him.

Sora walked wobbly toward the building, approaching the entrance.

"Not even one person left as a precaution? And they easily believed the poor excuse of a story readily to boot? What a rash bunch of idiots."

In the background, the noise of mayhem continued to ripple like the devil's orchestra.

As he walked in to the building with leisure, Naruto let out a smile.

000

Chapter Two

The Thespians of Destiny

"All the pieces lie where they fell, where they wait for him"

000

It was dark. The only light in there came from the flickering candles that lined up on the wall.

Suddenly...

Swoosh.

The feeling of a wind flew past him.

"Eh?" Naruto sounded his surprise.

... His gaze contorted. His throat was rasping dry as if he had gone through days without a drop of water.

Badump. Badump! BADUMP!

His heartbeat was increasing rapidly, adrenaline was pumping inside his veins. He was losing control over his body, starting from his fingertips, as if something violently entered his body and possessed him.

Losing his focus, he had also losing the ability to breath.

The mystic feeling of the burning incense, coming from deep inside the building, suffocated him.

His legs took a step forward. His body kept swaying to left and right as he trudged like a broken marionette. As though he would collapse any moment.

As though his body was no longer his.

The wall surrounded him had been painted with an intricate and beautiful fresco. As he passed them, the painting, depicting a war, came out to life.

A kid who was running through the battlefield was the protagonist.

In his hand, he clutched some sort of a handle something.

This was the first time he saw the tale, but it felt like he had knew about it since forever.

"Akkhh..."

His head was pounding.

Something contained inside trying to break free.

His trance-like walk finally brought him to a huge stone door, the crest of Land of Water dignifiedly lied in the middle of it.

The sound of an agonizing, deep screech reverberated as Naruto pushed open the huge door.

Looking up, he found that he was in a wide chamber which was semi-round in shape. The only illumination inside was the pale silvery glow of the moonlight, projecting a large sigil of 'Water' on the whole, round floor as being manipulated by the skillfully sculpted apertures across the roof.

In the middle of the chamber, he found it.

Suspended in midair, height not higher than his waist, were a casket. Embedded in the middle of it, was a wakizashi. 30 centimeters in length, almost half of it was buried into the coffin. Even with it still sheathed in its unadorned scabbard, it still attached firmly on the surface of the casket as if it was designed intentionally to be like that.

The word 'Twelve' and the forlorn symbol of Land of Fire etched on the sheath.

Void. Hollow. Disassociated.

No other words could describe the empty feeling that came from the sword more other than those words.

Badump! Badump! Badump!

His heart was beating madly at its sight.

Some sort of emotion bubbled up from deep inside his chest.

The inscription on the casket came into his view.

[This memorial is built as my endless gratitude to the man who saved my life.]

But he knew.

Even before checking it, Naruto knew that the inside was empty.

This coffin was just a symbolic grave for the savior of the kid on the wall.

"Akhhh!"

His vision twisted even further.

Losing balance, he wobbled forward. That was when he grasped the blade by accident.

That was the last cue.

Prang! The sound of breaking glass echoed inside his body.

As if something inside him broke, a torrent of emotion gushed out unbidden like dark flood.

His chest hurt.

This feeling, he knew it very well.

"S-stop... it"

Breaking, breaking, breaking.

His heart was breaking.

It hurt so much he felt like dying.

Along with that suffocating emotions, a surge of memories rushed out.

000

In the middle of the patio, Nanashi sat at a beautifully-carved table staring at the steam rising off the tea in front of him.

Sitting across him was Toka.

She wore a expensive-looking kimono, it was blue and the kind that was usually used by a noble or a high class person. Her silky black hair, even though was tied with a classy strap, still gave an effeminate feeling about it. In the afternoon light, her creamy-looking skin gleamed some sort of radiance that surrounded her with an enchanting air.

Suddenly...

Poke!

"Gakkh! My eyes!"

Without even changing her expression, Toka stabbed his eyes.

"A-are you trying to blind me! You idiot!"

"I saw your eyes wandered. You were imagining me naked, weren't you?"

"I did not!"

"You're implying that you were imagining something even more perverted than that? You should know staring pervertedly at a princess is a crime redeemed only by death. But it could be settled if you become a eunuch of this palace."

"So I either get castrated or hanged?"

This person was a fireball.

No mere words could contain her.

"So tell me what you've been doing?"

Wouldn't it better if she ask that first instead of trying to sentence him to death outright?

"Well, I've been doing this and that near Land of Water. You know, with another war looming and all." Even as he talked about such awful topic, he still looked unconcerned.

Toka looked solemn. "It has finally came to this, huh. Even by forming hidden villages, they can't still maintain the balance of power."

"You could say Konoha has a part of disturbing that balance. Although capturing the bijuu is a good thing, the other countries can't help but feel unsettle for one side to gain such a devastating power."

Their reasoning was simple. The Hokage was the only one who had the bloodline necessary to contain the bijuu, but that also meant that captured bijuu was pooled in one place, Konoha. The other countries feared that Konoha would unleash that unholy power on them sooner or later. It created a situation where the rival nations thought "It's better to attack them first rather than letting them attack and annihilate us."

"This is why I've been doing a secret project with the old geezer. By the way, what will you do if you live forever? How 'bout traveling the world?"

"Did you get hit hard in the head or something? Immortality is nonsense to begin with. Did you eat something weird?"

"Hahaha, you're right."

"By the way, where's your weapon?"

Toka must be referred to the vacancy of the dagger that could usually be found dangling uselessly at his side.

Nanashi wagged his finger, smirking. "Nu uh, that's a secret."

Shaking her head, Toka sighed. "You did something outrageous again, didn't you?"

"W-well, anyway..." As if found out, Nanashi sipped the last drop of his tea rather hurriedly then stood up. "Gotta go now. I still have some work left to be done."

Turning around, he started to walk.

"Hey." Toka called. "Be careful, okay. Remember that your task is to serve me. So don't you dare to die and abandon your duty like a coward."

Can't she just say, be safe? Geez...

Looking back at her from over his shoulder, Nanashi replied with a grin. "Gotcha. See you around, Toka."

He walked away.

The servants that lined up in the patio was surprised, not only because of their close bickering, but because the smile Toki-sama made as she watched the retreating back of Nanashi-sama.

This was the first time, they saw she smiled like that. A sad but beautiful smile.

Meanwhile, as Nanashi exited the patio, his casual expression instantly disappeared. A grim look that didn't fit his careless image emerged.

That's right, he noted. His job was to protect her.

That was the only promise that he wouldn't break.

... Even if he had to burnt the entire world just to fulfill that promise.

That's because...

"Because I'm a coward."

000

"That couldn't be, because Sora and Riku should have been unconscious at around the same time."

"W-wait. Then that means..."

In a frantic tone that didn't befit his status, the head monk stood up and shouted, "Alert all personnel to the No.11 now!"

Never let the blade got out from this temple, or an even greater destruction than that of the Bloodline Massacre would engulf Land of Water.

Such was an old prophecy from a priestess of Land of Demon that was only known in this temple.

Armageddon. The end of everything. Apocalypse.

This sole reason was why they abandon their country 20 years ago during the Bloodline Massacre. So that the prophecy would never happen.

They had to capture the intruder at all cost!

But...

"You won't do any of that."

A haughty voice rang throughout the long, winding alley.

A golden silhouette of a man stood behind them. They couldn't see his face since the shadow hid them but his posture was arrogance and condescending with such august solemnity. His figure was like an illusion wrapped in tornado and lightning.

Silently, a thin, golden line stretched, as though cutting the black, empty space behind him into two, until it seemed to reach the sky.

The monks tensed their muscles, not because they readied themselves to attack but because they felt it.

The overwhelming, oppressive feeling, emanating from the man, suppressed their body and soul, stamping his mark as their supreme ruler.

"Be joyous! For you have been granted the permission to die by me, so why don't you start rolling on the ground like a dog and amuse me. Do that and know that your life is worth something."

And then, the golden line expanded open like an enormous gate, a layer of gold could be seen.

_Run! Run! Run!_

Their instincts begged frantically.

The monk wanted to run, but they couldn't. Their feet rooted to the ground, shackled by massive fear. Without his order, they couldn't.

Infinite, small ripples scattered all over the layer of gold.

And they didn't even have the luxury to scream.

All they could do was watch as countless, golden lights filled in their visions as though infinite shooting stars rained upon the earth and entertained the man by dying like a squashed ants.

000

His head was pounding.

Finishing watching the scene as if it was his own memories, Naruto grasped his chest.

Why did it feel so heart-wrenching? So much that he couldn't bear it, this pain inside his chest.

Regret, regret, regret.

Overwhelming regret swallowed himself.

The feeling of drowning in sea of mud.

This was something he was so familiar of. The emotion called regret.

His trembling legs finally gave out as Naruto fell to his knees, leaning forward to the floating casket. His right hand still grasped the handle of the uninteresting short katana.

How incomprehensible.

Did this mean that his dream was real? And there was some sort of connection between him and the man inside the dream?

The ridiculousness of the entire situation, so surreal as though it was written by destiny, made him want to laugh out loud.

"I-I have to get out from here."

He was still in the enemy's territory, at the very least he could still remember that. Then he pulled out the short katana.

Bam!

The floating coffin immediately fell, the loud sound of the impact with the stone floor resounded in the hall.

So it's true that this blade was his objective. It felt like it was draining away his chakra bit by bit just by holding it.

"Hah... hah..."

But, he didn't have time to be concern about that now.

Breathing heavily, he stood up and sealed away the sword into his storage seal.

As if its objective had been accomplished, the strange feeling possessing his body faded as quickly as it appeared.

Strength gradually began to return. The massive headache receded as oxygen flowed in to his body without restraint.

It had the taste of having just woken up from a good night sleep.

Nothing left, not even the slightest trace of it.

"Eh?"

Faster than he uttered that word, his body had moved in a blinding speed.

Thunk, thunk, thunk!

When he landed, he saw three kunai had embedded themselves into the spot where he had been.

The realization didn't not last longer than half a second as his body moved again and spun around to send a roundhouse kick.

It hit air.

A tingling sensation came again, this time, it was coming to his chest.

Immediately realizing that there was an enemy, he jumped back, enough for the attack to miss, then dashed forward sending two quick jabs.

Again, they punched only an empty space.

With an amazing reaction, he took out a kunai from his side pocket, flipped back, and threw it to the direction of his intuition.

CLANG!

A loud clash of steel and steel echoed inside the chamber.

Probably feeling it was useless to continue hiding any longer, a shadowy figure walked out from the dark.

The silverly light of the moon, illuminating the wide into the chamber, revealed the identity of his attacker.

A girl, heights about 5.7 feet, stood no more than 5 feet away from him. Her silver, piercing eyes scrutinized him emotionlessly, a katana was in her right hand. Her light skin were gleaming ethereally as she bathed in the pale glow of the moonlight.

There was no even the slightest of expression on her exotic mien as though she was wearing a porcelain mask. Her stern constitution exuded confidence and pride that could be easily mistaken as arrogance. Her short blond hair was cut into a symmetry, bob style.

Even without counting in the D-cup her chest proudly defined, she was a natural beauty that could drive man crazy without even doing anything. Only the elegance of a royalty and the preciseness of a shinobi induced in her mannerism, no unnecessary movements.

Samui of Cloud.

The head Anbu of Kumogakure.

The prodigy of the jinchuuriki of Eight-tailed, Killer Bee.

The girl who was famous as the perfect definition of the word 'kunoichi'. Her success rate was also first class, so exceptional that they compared her to Uchiha Itachi.

Naruto didn't understand. Whether it was because of exhaustion, or it was his delusion but time seemed to become a standstill. The sensation of something eternal yet ephemeral washed over his senses. It was as if something reverberated inside him.

Despite all the description about her, all he saw was the painting of a maiden bathing in ethereal silver of moonlight.

So beautiful and so delicate, it would be etched into his mind forever.

Naruto was surprised.

Not by the sudden turn of event, but because he was captivated by her overwhelming beauty.

"I thought I was the first one who got into here, but to think that I'm actually the second, this temple has truly became very complacent." Samui spoke.

Her voice forced reality to sink in. The feeling was instantly gone, and the attitude of a soldier quickly replaced it.

Naruto tensed his body, ready for an attack.

This was bad.

He got approximately 3 minutes left, maybe less, before the monk found out his intention and swarmed this place.

This situation was just like a ticking time bomb. It was a battle against time.

"I don't like unnecessary fight. Are you going to hinder me, Samui of cloud?"

"If you provide me with what I need, there shouldn't be a need for that question at all, missing-nin Uzumaki Naruto"

Both of them stated each other names as though to reiterate their roles.

A kunoichi and a criminal.

"I see."

Swoosh!

They darted forward at the same time.

His kunai and her katana clashed loudly as the loud clang reverberated in the chamber.

Somersaulted back, the kunoichi launched a kunai in the midst.

Naruto dodged it, but before he made his next move, Samui had closed in and sent him into defense with a swift thrust to his neck.

He step over to his left, but, reading his move, she suddenly brake off and, as though being launch by a spring, her katana changed its path, following him.

Clang!

Using a kunai, he blocked her attack.

But, disregarding her smaller stature, the strength behind her attack send him flying.

"Akhhh!" Naruto gasped as he hit the coffin hard.

Analyzing his situation, he realized that he was cornered. He was a ninjutsu specialist hence in the situation where he couldn't use a technique, he was in a grave disadvantage. Moreover, his opponent was a Kenjutsu specialist and an Anbu commander.

At this rate, he would get killed here if he didn't use ninjutsu. But which one more dangerous? A single kunoichi or the entire army consisting of 300 monks.

Boom!

Naruto heard an explosion as he dodged to his left just in time. Her attack had cleanly cut the stone casket into two.

Taking this as a chance, he dashed forward, aiming the kunai in his hand to her chest.

It failed.

His kunai was deflected with a swift cut. Naruto was pushed backward.

His instinct was ringing loudly in his ears.

When the time he looked up, the gleaming edge of the katana was just an inch from his head.

He wouldn't have the time to dodge it.

Which one more dangerous? A single kunoichi or the entire army consisting of 300 monks...

Gritting his teeth,

BOOM!

... the answer was bitterly the former.

"Kyaaa!"

Samui was sent backward by a sudden gust of wind. Crashing into the wall, her body limped off among the sea of rubbles as she fell unconscious.

"Dammit!"

Naruto cursed loudly. He couldn't feel relieve yet since he had alarmed the entire temple of his presence.

He had to escape and fast.

But he looked back at the girl. Should he leave her here? They were enemies after all.

Shaking his head, he walked to her and pick her up.

"So stupid." This unpleasant word wasn't directed to her but rather to himself.

Carrying the girl over his shoulder, Naruto escaped from the temple, without knowing that not long after he left the temple of Land of Water was no more.

With this, all the pieces of fate had finally began to move...

... To conclude a promise from a long time ago.

000

Burning.

Everything was burning.

The eerie reverberation of the war alarm continued to echo as if wailing in anguish.

Crimson and orange swirled around, filling his visions.

The sound of the conflagration crackled as the buildings around him crumble.

When Sora realized, this was the scene that entered his eyes.

The pile of fleshes and meats, whom once he called brothers, littered on the street.

Their dead bodies was full of holes that they didn't even resemble human anymore.

The nauseating feeling, forming in the pit of his stomach, had suddenly became too much.

His throat filled up.

"Ukhh-!" He emptied the content of his stomach.

His heavy breathing suddenly mixed with the sound of approaching footsteps.

Looking up, he saw a silhouette of a man, staring down at him.

"Ah, ah... some trashes survives. I congratulates you for that."

His body suddenly trembled.

Sora didn't understand the reason, but he recognized this emotion.

He was... scared.

Just by being in the presence of the man choked him up.

"I'll give you a chance to entertain me. If you kill this insignificant, I might let you live a little while longer."

What?

Entering his ears was someone writhing and crawling behind him.

Sora looked back and saw a horribly disfigure man.

"H-head monk, sir!"

Yes, the person behind him was the most powerful man in this temple.

"Kill him."

The shadow figure ordered.

Sora stiffened.

If he wanted to live he had to kill him.

If he wanted to survive he had to kill him.

He had kill the man who he looked up to as a father figure.

"D-don't kid me." His voice shook as Sora glared at the man hatefully. "I... I would never do that!"

Though just to keep conscious was a tremendous agony, he defied the order.

No matter how much his mind begging him to do it so that he could live.

But as if reading his mind, the man kept grinning maliciously.

Then, the sound of piercing flesh.

"W-what?"

Sora sounded his disbelief.

The smell of iron mixing with blood filled Sora's senses. He tasted the thick, globs of substance called blood bubbling inside his throat.

"W-why?"

As he uttered that, Sora looked down at the stained, half edge of the katana that had pierced through his body.

"Hahahaha, that's what I'm talking about."

So the entire time, the man didn't even look at him instead he was talking at the writhing man behind him.

The man he thought as father had betrayed him.

The look on his face must be very funny because the man couldn't stop laughing.

"That's good, that's good... That's how things should work."

He sounded very happy as if he watched a hilarious movie.

"Now, perished."

With the word, as if ordering a bug to be squashed, countless golden blazes filled his whole perception like a fleeting, thousands fireworks.

It was very beautiful, Sora thought.


	3. Escape from Mist

Disclaimer: Do not own Naruto or Type Moon

000

The morning was cold and humid.

Thick fog clouded his surrounding, painting his vision with a dull, pale gray.

A flickering of orange, not two feet away from him, marring the ghostly color of the morning. It was the small fire he had made to ward off the cold air, although it wasn't that effective but it had helped him to sustain his body heat just to the minimum to avoid hypothermia.

Everything was in complete silence.

Not even a faint rustle of leaves or the quiet hiss of the shifting air could be heard.

It was as though every voice in the entire world simply vanished.

Above his palm was a plain dagger, floating in mid-air as if suspended by invisible strings.

By now, Naruto could, at least, understood how it worked.

Its capacity to levitate itself was possible seeing that it turned the chakra it minutely sucked from him that ability.

What kind of material it was made from, how it precisely worked, what more potential did it possess. He didn't know, he wasn't from an Intelligence department to begin with.

But, whether it would lead to a war, massacre or a genocide, or it would bring to an everlasting peace to Elemental Nations were a different questions.

The answer to those were a simple yes.

And he didn't care even a tiny bit about any of that.

Why should he? Worrying stuff like that was like worrying about whether tomorrow would be raining or not.

A useless notion.

People lived and died every day even without even the involvement of this strange weapon.

A thief killed a passerby so he could eat.

A mother murdered a bandit to protect her children.

Or even a country sacrificed their soldiers to avoid a war because of their superior's mishap of information.

It was simply not his problem how his client would use it. People lived and died everyday, if he bothered with small things like that, he couldn't do his job, could he?

You would call it heartless or callous but he preferred to call it as being prudent.

Saying that, he just disappointed that this mission was this simple.

"Ouch..."

Naruto grimaced as a fleeting, sharp pain pierced his head.

Wincing, he could hear a voice echoing.

_"Yes, I promise. I'll fulfill it, no matter how."_

The feeling was as if his heart was twisting and writhing.

Just when the voice became really unbearable, making him almost throw up, it dissipated as quick as it came.

Ever since last night, that kind of voice would pop put in his head here and there, as if trying to remind him about the dream and the illusionary promise.

And his reply to that was, so what?

Even his dream was real didn't mean he had to oblige with it, especially to comply with nonsense like promises.

If only the dream popped up ten years ago he would probably be bothered by it, but right now, he wouldn't give a damn about it as his life was solely for reaching the goal he so dearly wished for.

Only that, nothing else mattered.

Clenching the short katana for a moment, Naruto stuffed it into his vest pocket when he noticed the girl began to stir.

000

The salty smell of the humid air stirred her up. Opening her eyes, she found that mist was blurring her vision. It took a while before her eyesight adjusted themselves.

Groaning a little, she tried to wake up but failed. She fell down in the midst of her try, gasping as a sharp pain echoed through out her body. The soreness of her muscle was weighting on her body, restricting her movement.

Her body felt very heavy as though her body had became a giant rock.

"Yo, wake up already?" Someone asked blithely.

Ignoring the stabbing pain, she turned to the voice with much effort to find a blond man sitting by the fire.

He was a shinobi, there was no mistake about it. His posture even though appear to be relax didn't give away any opening. Observing further, his nonchalant visage didn't cast off an intimidating radiant around him. He was around 6.2 feet and had a spiky blond hair. A green vest hugged his chiseled body pronouncing further the standard Konoha's Jounin get up he wore, a scratched-leaf headband was around his left biceps. Despite his mesmeric blue eyes and imposing figure, what would draw people to notice him would be his whiskers-like birthmark on both of his cheeks that resembled a fox.

_Danger!_

Even before she noticed his slashed-headband, her instinct had been screaming at her that from the very first glance of him.

Furthermore, he was also her enemy from the previous night. A criminal that was labeled with 'Kill on sight' and 'Approach with caution' in Bingo book, an S-rank, and also the hero from the previous Akatsuki war and the only surviving Jinchuuriki left beside her sensei, Killer Bee.

Uzumaki Naruto, the man who had slaughtered thousands of his kind, a murderer, a betrayer, a monster.

That kind of inhuman sobriquet was given to him as justification to his infamous reputation and inhumane acts against humanity.

"Akkh!"

Samui tried to stand but her body failed her again as she fell down hard.

"Aren't you so lively? Did something good happen?" Naruto said. "And 'till when you wanna keep glaring at your savior? I even get into trouble healing you all night. Is that really how people in Kumo show their gratitude? Most rude."

Samui glared at him.

Opening her mouth, she tried to speak but found that her throat was too dry so instead she let out a fit of cough.

The girl tensed as Naruto moved.

But instead, he picked up a bottle on the ground and walked toward her. Crouching down, he offered her the bottle to drink.

"Here, drink" The missing-nin offered.

The silver-eyed woman only watched him and the offered bottle emotionlessly. Her mask-like expression didn't falter even a moment.

Perhaps he wanted something from her, but nothing was making any sense to her. He obviously controlled the situation here. If he wanted to rape her, he would had done so or he wanted information from her perhaps but there's no way he would know that she had any for him since she actually had nothing valuable or useful.

He should had just leave her in the temple last night but he raised his possibility of getting caught by taking her along with him so it was only logical that he wanted something from her, and that something was probably important enough to him that he wouldn't mind risking himself.

The question was what did he want from her. Everything he did just wasn't rational and gave no benefit from her point of view in fact if their roles were reversed, she would had escaped by herself without second thought.

There was one other possibility in her mind, but that possibility would never apply on a criminal especially a mass murderer, who killed both guilty and innocent indiscriminately, like him.

"It's not a poison. Why would I poison someone I'd worked my ass so hard to heal" The Uzumaki take a gulp from the bottle to prove his point. "See?"

When he offered her the bottle again, and tried to help her drink, the kunoichi snatched the bottle, flinching at the pain from making a sudden move.

Naruto just looked at her amusedly.

Glancing at him for a moment, the girl took a cautious whiff of the content. It took a while before she decided that it wasn't a poison and took an elegant sip.

"I'd like to say that it's an indirect kiss but obviously you don't care, right?" He jibed.

She indeed didn't care as she didn't stop from her drinking but the shut-up-you're-annoying look spoke clearly of her feeling about him.

Putting away the bottle, Samui returned the stare to him, scrutinizing him once more.

Making a smile that felt hollow, Naruto began.

"It's been a while since our first meeting, hasn't it? My first impression about you was very striking that it's very hard to forget about you." Naruto shook his head "No, no... that's wrong, it's my impression to your team that's striking or rather the beating your barbarous teammate gave me when we first met was literally striking. People just couldn't forget such a memorable first meeting. How's them by the way? Karui and Omoi, right?"

Samui didn't answer.

"Oh yes, they're dead. My condolences then, but that could also mean you're doing a solo mission right now... aren't you?" He continued mocking her, as if he merely read some data from a file. No feeling whatsoever.

"C'mon... Don't glare at me like that. I'm just saying, why would you get attach to friends bullshits or whatever. People is a solitary beings to begin with."

"Is that why you kill even your own teammates?" Her soulless stare was unrelenting as she said that.

To Naruto, it was a statement more than a question.

"Meh, why did you bring that up? Shouldn't you instead thank me for ending that war? You guys don't even care anyway as long as the objective is achieved. That's how we do things, right?"

"Aren't you the one who's been saying nonsense? Keep telling that to yourself but you know that's just a big fat lie. When a person die, they take away a piece of you with them. This has nothing to do with being a shinobi."

Naruto's expression was hard to decipher.

But a moment later, he laughed. "Hahaha, did you tell me that you're actually get sentimental about it. Hahaha, this is rich! A person who is touted as the perfect definition of kunoichi still believes in that childish thing."

Naruto laughed so hard that it made him very hard to breathe.

But, the girl was startled as she didn't understand it either, the reason why she lost her coolness and said that.

Did it because this man look really pitiful?

"But, Samui of Cloud..." He continued as his laughter subsided. "Don't act like you know anything about me. So I appreciate it if you stop your preaching, and start thinking why did I save you?"

"The same to you, Uzumaki Naruto. Don't act like you know me. What make you think that I'll help you with anything?"

Naruto grinned.

At last. It would be better if they talked business from the beginning.

Just a simple negotiation.

"Let's state the fact in our current situation, shall we? First fact, you're injured; a Kumo kunoichi injured in a rival country. Second fact, the temple of that said country was infiltrated just a night before and their prized item which on the level of national treasure was stolen. Third fact, Lightning and Water country was never in the best term to begin with, and for all I know, the two countries signed the treaty to maintain the political power of Five Great Nations. You don't have to be a genius to figure out what I'm trying to point out."

Samui's grey eyes narrowed angrily at him.

Naruto returned it with a huge grin.

"There will be a total blockade around Land of Water thus getting out by normal way is impossible, but as the Anbu commander you should know a way to round this blockade to Land of Lightning. I need you to lead me to there and you _will_. I can just leave you here but I'm offering you a chance to avoid another war. They say, if you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. It's a win-win situation, isn't it Lady Anbu?"

"Why should I agree? All your talks about war is just a baseless thinking and I could just tell them about your existence if Kirigakure interrogate me."

"I can't believe you're that naive." He used a chiding tone "Do you actually believe what you're just said? If you do, wake up, this is a real world not a beautiful fairy tale in those fancy novels. Let me tell you what will happen to you if I left you behind. You'll get tortured and even though you tell them the truth, no one would believe you because they need a scapegoat which is you, who conveniently is a foreign and suspicious kunoichi, the same person who illegally sneaked into their temple. A little twist here and there, and you'll get another brewing war between your beloved village and the Land of Water."

"But the choice is all yours, I couldn't force you to choose my way, could I?"

Naruto remarked, sarcasms dripping from his tone.

Samui would never cooperate with a criminal, especially the one whom even called a monster by his own village. The girl had the pride and arrogance as a powerful kunoichi.

Suddenly, the couple tensed.

Their surrounding was the same as before. Thin mist was drifting lazily in the forest, obstructing the morning sunlight, but something told their instincts for the incoming battle. Chakra signatures were fast approaching their direction. Without doubt, they were belong to Kiri shinobi.

"I don't have the luxury to wait. So, you're in or out?"

Yes, she had the pride and arrogance as a powerful kunoichi, but she also had the coolness to disregard those emotions.

Gritting her teeth, Samui nodded.

Instantly, she started to feel a headache. She just almost passed out from the humiliation.

Naruto reached to his pocket and took out a small pill case. From it, he took out a soldier pill.

"Here." He tossed the bitter supplement to her.

Samui caught it, and after she swallowed it she tried to stand up but before she did that, Naruto, in one swift motion, had picked her up bridal style.

The kunochi stiffened.

"Insolence! Put me down! What do you think you're doing!"

Who the hell he think he was, touching her like this without her permission.

"Oi, oi, stop, hitting me"

Tightening his hold around her while ignoring her protest, he dashed off through the misty forest in a blinding speed.

000

Chapter 3

Escape from Mist

"One who betrayed should except betrayal."

000

A port town was not the right term to describe this place because it felt more like a slum than an actual town.

A single dirt road leading up to the port, at each side there were old looking buildings, its structure looked like it could crumble down at any time. A thin mist strolled through the place at lazy pace. There were lots of beggars, lining up at the side of the road, indiscriminately ranging from young to old. They had anxious looks as they kept glancing discreetly at their direction.

From the moment Naruto stepped in the town, he knew something was up.

The feeling of being watched had been accompanying him ever since they arrived in this place.

He could shrug it as simply his feeling but the Mist shinobi was very famous for their silent killing technique. You just wouldn't know it until you're dead. This was one of the main reason, besides its numerous diversity of bloodlines clans, why Mist was able to be considered as one of Five great hidden villages.

And his instinct was right yet again.

Stopping abruptly in the middle of the road, the girl in his arm looked up at him questioningly, but Naruto ignored it as his eyes laid ahead.

A man, wearing Mist insignia, stood in the middle of the road. "By the order of the Daimyo, both of you will be taken into the custody of Mizu no kuni. Surrender peacefully. Fail to do so, we will resort to take a drastic measure"

Taking that as a cue, shinobi began to show up from their hiding place. Soon enough, the small town was filled with them. From the roof to the alley, Kiri nin were all over the place.

Silence engulfed the area. The tension was as high as ever. It was the man who ordered them to surrender to break the silence first.

"Uzumaki Naruto and Samui of the Cloud. What a strange combination. Who would have thought that the much feared and revered as Kumo Anbu commander would cooperate with a criminal."

The girl in his arms made a disgust scowl. Apparently even the thought of being with him irritated her. On the side note, though, why was this guy talking so much?

"And a S-rank? What an exaggeration, you're nothing but a scum and a sad excuse of a person. Why else your own village despise you so much? Monster? More like a dirt, and you even dare thinking to become the leader of your village. Know your place, demon."

Something's odd. Naruto knew that much, the kiri nin was baiting him to make a first move.

"You don't agree? Well, it's too late anyway. You should at least savor the taste of silent killing."

His blue eyes widened as Naruto dodged as fast as he could but it was too late. A kiri nin had managed to sneak on him from behind and stabbed his shoulder, though it was supposed his neck if he didn't move.

Naruto staggered and dropped the kunoichi. Spun around, he did a roundhouse kick. Merely an inch before it hit, two shinobi had moved to behind him and run their swords through his body.

The first Kiri shinobi took this as an opportunity to impale him on his chest.

Naruto could only looked down at the edge of the katanas that skewered his body. The cold metals, buried inside his body, hold him in place. Blood started to fill up his throat, some of it escaped from the side of his mouth, painting his lip with red as if he was wearing a lipstick.

It was as if those katanas sucking away the warmth, his body started to feel cold.

"D-dammit..." Naruto cursed himself for not realizing the attack until it was too late.

Samui tried to move her body, but it was futile. Her body refused to follow her command.

One of the Kiri nin walked to her then, without preamble, cut the muscle of her four limbs.

"Akkhh!"

Blood spurted out from her limbs.

"You won't need those anytime soon." He coldly ignored her pained cry. Sending a brisk nod to his subordinates that had their swords buried in the missing nin, he looked back at the woman on the ground.

A second later, a head rolled off of a body. Warm, crimson liquid squirted out furiously like a water sprinkler as if trying to paint the white mist with red.

The Kiri nin crouched down, grabbing a fistful of her blond hair, forcing her to look at him "You don't have to glare at me so much. I only need one of you to be interrogated so it's only natural to dispose any excessive baggage. No hard feeling."

Samui spat on his face.

He remained unfazed and slapped her face, but was surprised when he instead saw her grinning disturbingly.

"Do you really think I could be killed so easily?"

The kiri nin widened his eyes as her figure flickered into her blond counterpart. Quickly looking ahead, he watched the corpse of the missing nin poofed away.

Naruto laughed "Hahaha... No hard feeling right"

He winked.

000

Miles away from the shore of the Land of water, a wooden boat was heading towards the mainland. Both of its passengers were watching the black smokes from different locations rising up, tainting the whiteness of the mist in the distance.

The blond male had a smug grin as he heard another blast in the distance.

"Pretty clever, isn't it?"

"So that's why we didn't meet any Kiri shinobi on the way to the port. You used couples of Kagebunshin and Bunshin daibakuha as a decoy." Samui spoke with a prudent tone of voice as if she read it from a file. "What will you do next?"

"It's not I'll do, it's what _you_ will do next. I've hold a part of my bargain, now is the time for you to show me the place."

"I see." Samui nodded. "Then do you have any map? I'll show you the exact coordinates with it."

Naruto turned around. Crouching a bit, he was about to grasp for a map.

"Eh?"

He gasped in disbelief as suddenly he felt a piercing cold in his chest, as if another experience of his clone rushing back to him.

"Ha...ha..." Naruto chuckled a bit.

But...

This feeling of being stabbed were just as his thought, belonged only to himself.

The sharp edge of a katana gleaming red at the peripheral of his eyes, as though looking down at him, prod out of his chest.

He thought he had checked her through to dispose all of her hidden weapon, it looked like he missed one.

"I missed your vital spots on purpose." A breathy voice whispered at his ear. "You've got barely 2 minutes before your blood begins to fill your lungs and drown you."

His consciousness started to fading away.

"You've never answer my question from before. Why did you kill your own teammates?"

"I,is-" Naruto gasped as he spoke. "Is that really matter?"

"It's jsut because I can't stand your pathetic looks as if crying."

"Heh..." He was getting very hard to breath, like the air had turned into sand. Every time he breathed in, it felt like his lung was bursting. "It's simply because I'm twisted."

"Is your last word going to be another lie?"

Naruto didn't answer her, instead he glanced back at her.

"D,don't you wonder why did I save you?" He grinned, bloods seeped out from his lips. "I'll tell you the reason instead. It's because you're my decoy. Now, the Mist will also looking for you instead just me. Do you really think I would be that stupid asking for help to an enemy? Well, it's been really a pain in the ass meeting you. I hope I'll never see you again. Goodbye."

Samui's grey eyes opened wide.

BOOM!

Tremendous blast shook the dark open water as Naruto exploded.

The wooden boat and its surrounding was shelled to smithereens.

Far away, somewhere in Land of Water, the original headed to his next destination...

... with a victorious smile.


	4. Broken Sword of Justice

Disclaimer: Do not own Naruto or Type Moon

Enjoy.

A/N: For the one who is wondering why did I re-upload the chapters, it's because I decided to rewrite the dream sequences and some part of the story. Hence the story line, albeit a little, will be differ from the last one. I strongly suggest to re-read it from the first chapter to avoid confusion in later chapters especially after chapter 7 and more.

000

A hellish world.

The air was thick with the sickening scent of blood and death. The beautiful landscape that supposed to paint the Land of Fire with luscious green was no where to be seen, destroyed into black ashes by the dark flame of Amaterasu.

The pink human's entrails and their mutilated bodies littered on the burning ground like trashes. What were once life breathing humans was now nothing but a mountain pile of meats and carcasses.

This was the hell that was the final battleground of The Fourth Shinobi war.

Blood made Naruto vision red and blurry. Wounds and fatigue worn him out, making him very hard to keep conscious. His legs trembled as the sign of his body's protest. The scene in front of him was hard to comprehend. It was a sight of a girl, with her petite figure, struggling to hold a man. Her lips was moving like she was saying something but he couldn't hear it at first.

Her face was blurry, perhaps it was because of the blood that got into his eyes, but he could still make out the swaying of her pink hair.

"... Do it"

A weak yet resolute whisper pleaded him.

Brittle and fragile like a cracking crystal, as though it could shatter any second, yet it was the soft voice that overwhelmed every other sounds on the battlefield.

Pained cries, hateful curses, begs for salvation; every single sounds felt like was sucked in to an empty void. The world had been turned into mute.

All he could hear was her small, tired voice.

"Do it, Naruto."

Her pleading word struck his soul as he watched her struggling in disbelief. She was not pleading for her death but for the end of this endless bloodshed.

What should he do? What should he do? What should he do?

On one side there was his duty to end this bloodstained war, on the other side there was a girl he loved more than anything else in this world.

Which one should he choose? One girl or the rest of humanity?

It was such a simple question and the answer should had been very obvious.

But still, his heart refused.

_'Naruto, do you know that the worth of someone's life isn't about how they live their life but the manner of how they die. That one, fleeting end defines everything in our entire life.' _

Why did he remember her word now?

Despair washed over him like dark wave. Hopelessness was eating away his soul. This wasn't something he could solve just by shouting "'Believe it!" or "Promise of the lifetime!". If those empty words could bring peace upon this world, none of this would happen. Everyone would be still living in those blissful days in the distance past. Ever smiling and laughing without any care in the world.

Why?

Why did this happen?

All he wanted was so everybody could be happy.

He balled his fist so hard that his hand started to bleed as if that could help him strengthened his resolve.

He cursed himself for being weak.

He cursed the world for this fate.

"Naruto, please..."

Beautiful blue sphere appeared in his palm, spinning coldly. He couldn't bear to see her face, still burning with the Will of Fire even in the face of death.

"DO IT!"

With a silent cry, he run towards them, wielding the rasengan in his palm and struck into their hearts. The momentum and efficiency was perfect, they were killed the instant his prized technique run through their chests.

Along with the death of the last Uchiha, the arduous war finally ended.

He should feel happiness, shouldn't he? Why wouldn't anything appear?

Was it because he had saved humanity at the cost of a girl who was the most precious to him. Was it because he had chose the entire world over her?

All he felt was the murky feeling of drowning in the sea of mud.

This, however, was only the beginning.

000

Naruto was in the library of Land of Water.

But most specifically, he was in the capital city of this country like where the library he was in located.

This library had always been prided as the most extensive and the biggest in the entire Elemental Nations. There were at least 600,000 volumes filled with knowledge, there were even rare books that could cause a war between bloodlines clans hidden among them. In this humongous library, hundreds of beautifully-crafted wooden shelves filled with books and scrolls, loomed over the visitors, boasting their lofty heights. The smell of papers permeating from the walls and floor. The mazy structures could be overwhelming for some as though trying to swallow its guests.

A prestigious university was nearby thus this library was often used, not only by academics, but also model students who was striving to get the best grade or desperate undergrads who were pulling an all-nighter for their assignments.

This was the best hideout for him.

Who would expect a S-class missing-nin hide here? In their own capital city?

When he decided to use the Kumo Anbu as a decoy, he had already this place in mind as a temporary refuge.

Besides, it wasn't like he could go anywhere anytime soon. Kiri shinobi should have been stationed in every borders of Land of Water, hence it was impossible for him to get out when they were still in high alert.

The other reason was he still needed to wait for his client to contact him.

Looking around, Naruto noticed that the library was quiet empty. If he recalled correctly, the university was closed for winter holiday. The one who was left here was probably the student who was doing their late assignments but it looked like most of them had given up and just idling away like rotten vegetables.

Human was incredible, Naruto thought.

It was only three years ago the war ended and it seemed that it had been a thing in the past.

The last Shinobi Great War itself spanned for 5 years. You could say that it changed even the outlook of the continent. Towns were burnt down and places were destroyed.

The same could be said to people. Nearly half of its former population was perished.

Among his generation, he was the only one who survived.

But that's not all. After the annihilation of the common enemy, the alliance instantly broke down. Each five nations blamed each others for their loss and despair, and instead of celebrating their victory, they turned the tip of their spears towards their own allies.

As if intoxicated by blood and death, another war broke out soon after for another 2 years.

The destruction brought forth in those two years far surpassed the war against Akatsuki.

Friends killed friends. Lover assassinated own partners. Spouses hunted down their offsprings.

It was a world-wide event that had been the showcase how corrupted and evil humanity really were.

On the contrary to the normal suggestions, the granting of sobriquet 'Monster' as a household name across the land to him was in this war, not the last one.

And then 10 years had passed as instant as the swirling wind to Naruto.

Reminiscing about the past always made him felt the despair strangling his neck. It was always happened when he was idling away like this.

But when Naruto looked up, he was even more surprised that a pair of jade green were staring at him.

He couldn't fathom the reason why she was looking at him. He was sure that there was nothing could be more anonymous than his disguise; black hair that was sleekly styled to the side, big round eyeglasses, plain and unimportant face . It was a meticulous appearance of a penniless, studious boy who looked to be crushing on the most beautiful girl in his class and was bullied by his peer because of his geeky looks.

No one would even pay a second glance in his way. He was just a pebble at the side of the road.

Then why did she take an interest in him?

It was happening so sudden, out of nowhere, she just walked and sat across of him, who had picked out the corner of this huge library. Her light footsteps made her look as if she was gliding; a truly elegant way of moving. Furthermore, she didn't appear to be in a disguise, held no killing intent and was using zero chakra as a matter of fact.

"Good afternoon..." Her melodious voice greeted him graciously.

Green eyes.

Flawless fair skin.

Auburn hair styled at shoulder length, if only it was bright pink.

It couldn't be...

"... I'm..."

... She looked just like...

"Sakura"

... Sakura.

000

Chapter 4

Broken Sword of Justice

"If only I was a mindless machine that don't feel, don't think, and only follow a set of rules that had been input into my program..."

000

The strange woman just sat there, smiling, watching as he went numb, as the image Sakura's sad mien kept flickering and overlapping over the girl in front of him.

Tremendous guilt bubbled up from his chest, threatening to rip it apart. His head froze as though someone just hit him in the head. The world surrounding him started to melt.

The urge to throw up rose from the pit of his stomach, quickly becoming unbearable.

This Sakura wasn't his Sakura, he knew very well of that fact. Moreover, her name was likely a fake but his mind apparently didn't agree with him as it kept projecting the image of that dead girl.

Before long, he had forgot how to breath. Before long, he had to remind himself how to breath.

The overlapping image of Sakura then shook her head sadly, her pink hair gently shifted in the air as she did that. Her jewel-like eyes lied upon him in sorrow.

"What'd happen to you, Naruto? There seems to be an extremely stagnant atmosphere that surrounds you. I don't understand the cause of it but it must be from anger or hatred, right? That's not good, you know. Sooner or later, you'll be dyed completely black and exhaust yourself."

Whether it was his delusion talking or the she actually said that, he didn't know, but this emotion he was feeling must be true.

It was fear.

Fear that she was the real Sakura. Fear that she would blame him for killing him.

And, of course, there was an unbidden hatred.

When he thought about it, the timing of her appearance was just too perfect. It couldn't be a coincidence that he met her here. She must be do this to throw him off balance. The way she smiled and looked at him, it was an undeniable proof that she knew her effect on him, mocking him.

_Shall he kill her?_

The carnal impulse rose up suddenly, like that of an instinct that belonged to a cornered animal. It should be real easy to snap her lithe neck. That would be a clean method, if he moved faster enough no one in here would notice and he could arrange her body as if she was taking a little nap.

_Then, shall he?_

If she was any other person, it shouldn't be a problem but in his current state of mind, he wouldn't be able to even if he wanted to. The sinister intent created another mirage; the unwavering face of his late teammate from five years ago, the moment before he ran through her chest with rasengan, overlapped with the woman's face this time. Her small lips was moving but he couldn't hear her at first just like that day.

"Do it, Naruto"

Her whispered voice. The voice that he would never forget in his life.

"Do it"

Shut up.

Shut up.

Shut up!

Shut up!Shut up!Shut up!Shut up!Shut up!

_'Naruto, do you know that the worth of someone's life isn't about how they live their life but the manner of how they die. That one, fleeting end defines everything in our entire life' _

"SHUT UP!" Naruto yelled.

Tremendous emotions breed illogical action. That was how he had stood up abruptly and smashed the table into two.

His foggy mind cleared. As he snapped out, reality came back to him. He found himself breathing heavily and his henge had disappeared with the Kyuubi's tainted chakra pumping madly through his vein. His pupil had turned crimson and he had no doubt that his appearance had became demon-like, and yet the auburn-haired woman remained unfazed and kept her ever smiling face.

"Calm down, Naruto-kun. You're making a scene"

The blond renegade looked around and found that everyone was staring in fear and shock. They were quiet far from his position but they surely could feel the terrible killing intent pouring out of him.

Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself. "Just who are you? What do you want? Are you my client?"

"Correct." 'Sakura' said airily while keeping her smiling mien.

"Drop your disguise, will you?" Naruto hissed. "Your face is really pissing me off."

"No. I need the reassurance that you won't kill me. You almost did, right? It just meant this is the perfect appearance to meet you. This place is no longer safe. I'll contact you when it's time to retrieve the object. In the meantime, you probably want to go the eastern part of this island."

"Is that a side mission? It will cost you extra." He blithely said.

"Do not fret about the reward. It's just I thought you might want to go there to alleviate boredom."

Naruto wasn't sure why her talking politely aggravated him. Perhaps because it felt condescending?

"Don't play with me. Just because you says you're my client doesn't mean you actually are." His glare intensified.

"Oh my, are you really that passionate about me? Well, it's up to you whether to accept it or not, but you might find what you're looking for in there." The woman's smile grew more sultry, looking into his eyes. "What you're _really_ looking for."

"You-!"

But soon as she said that, she stood up gracefully, then with the same alluring finesse as the way she came, turned around, and disappeared as though she was an illusion created by this old library, ignoring him.

Their meeting happened only about 5 minutes but to him, it felt like an eternity.

000

The night was almost an absolute darkness in Mizu no kuni. The usual starry sky was being blanketed by the ominous armada of dark clouds, looming over the entire country, not even a flicker of the pale moonlight could be seen, instead the loud thunders roaring up in the far distance were the only thing that illuminate his way in the forbidden forest.

A heavy storm was going to hit this country soon.

Naruto sped as if he was riding the wind, the cold torrent of gust that rattled the forrest mercilessly caused him no discomfort.

His destination was the eastern part of this island.

By 'this' island, he meant the nearest island to the mainland and also the first line defense of Land of Water, where the capital city and the Mist hidden village, and also the temple of Water, resided.

Decades ago, before the First Shinobi Great war broke out, this country of Water, who had the smallest territory among the Five great nations, abandoned a third of this island and labelled it as forbidden.

Many rumors and theories had been circulated as to why this country vacated the area, each one differed with the other.

He wouldn't surprise that the real reason had been long lost in the sea of time.

But what disconcerted him was the similarity in those hearsay; that a demon laid waste in the eastern part of this island.

The demon, the devil, the giant, the monster, the titan, the colossus, the god, an abomination, the immortal one. That existence was called under a different name.

Was it a Bijuu? It was unlikely. In the first place, the information could very well be a fraud, but how could all of them mentioned the same thing?

Legends, folk tales, rumors, even military reports revealed the similarity on this account.

Missing reports mentioning the forbidden land in this country was very high. The search party that entered that area never came back. It was as if they're being swallowed a whole by the woodland.

The case of disappearance still continued on even to this day, be it a civilian, a green-horn genin, or even a veteran shinobi. It had been an unwritten rule not to enter the forbidden forest whatever the situation that rose.

And that crossed out the possibility of a Bijuu since they were already sealed away by that period of time.

You must be wondering why he was in such a treacherous region. It's simply because being inside that library was actually managed to also turn him into a mindless vegetable.

And there was also the curiosity as to how did that woman know what he looked for, if it was actually real or not.

Then, he noticed something strange about this area.

As a result of having been abandoned for so long, trees grew aplenty, the size of them even rivaling the one in Konoha's forbidden forest, but that was the same reason as to why this forest exuded an unnatural atmosphere, surrounding the entire area with subtle delicacy, even as the prelude of a tempest was happening, it still couldn't topple its mystifying aura.

It really felt like the forest was a living entity. The blond had sped through this forests for quiet sometime yet he didn't detect a single living being inside, not even an insect.

For an untouchable forest, it was a near impossible feat for not being inhabited by a single life form. He could only conclude that there was something that devouring all the living thing.

"A demon? I guess it really has a huge appetite then." Naruto just shrugged off nonchalantly. Or maybe the entire forest itself was the voracious demon, a possibility.

Something suddenly prickled his eyes. It was a grain of sand. It was just a bit at first so he didn't pay attention to it but slowly, the quantity started to reach a surprising amount as the violent wind carried the sand with it, playing them in the air.

He was forced to stop, to adjust his eyes.

A desert was a region that received an extremely low amount, less than enough to support growth of most plants. The condition made the soil hardened and slowly was being dissolved by the corrosive wind to sand, ebbing away as it spread like a cancer.

Mizu no Kuni lacked neither water nor rain. What had actually happened to this country in the past?

Naruto was filled with both wonderment and dread as he stood on the branch of the tree, looking in the distance at the never-ending desert that laid across everywhere he could see, bordering with the abnormal forest of Water country.

To put it simply, this forbidden region that was supposed to be a vast forest was actually a desert, surrounded by a centuries years old woodland. This was something never been mentioned in any references he read.

Without being canopied by the forest's rooftop, the thunder storm in the sky was as domineering as it could be, crackling and roaring like the booming sound of a war drum. The violent wind created small whirlwinds from the sand. The darkness of the dessert had reached its zenith.

The forlorn renegade stood at the top of the sand dune, looking down, feeling nothing in particular as he scrutinized his surrounding.

Boulders and rubbles that littered the dessert, only served as the evidence of a dead civilization, with most of its part had been reduced to dust by the sand of time. This area had been totally and utterly laid waste like the legend said.

But what kind of entity could pull this off, it had to be so devastating to make even one of the five superpowers to seal off this place just to fend it off.

In the peripheral of his vision, Naruto caught a glimpse of small lights.

He had to focus his eyes to make out an outline of a huge camp which reminded him of a bright-lit circus complex; one huge tent in the middle that was surrounded by smaller tents. Being in the middle of nowhere, it had to be a bandit's den and that also meant...

"You better no thinking anything funny, blondie. You're surrounded here unless you want to be chopped into pieces that is"

A round of gruff laughs followed.

Like he suspected, there's a patrol around the lair.

"Hnn." Naruto grunted in displeasure.

Was this what that woman actually mean? Would this mystery end right after it began?

This couldn't even count as passing free time.

_What a huge waste of time._

There were 5 bandits, he could slaughter them less than 5 seconds. A second each. But he needed a shelter from the incoming storm, so surrendering to them was a logical choice for now, he could kill them all later after the storm receded. It's like killing two birds with one stone. He got a shelter from the storm and did a charity work to contribute to the society by cleaning off some trashes. Why everyone called him a monster anyway, when he was this nice and generous.

Naruto put his hands up. As soon as he did that, the men roughly grabbed him and lead them to their hiding place.

It was only a 10-minute walk. When he passed the complex, he noticed there are some cages that filled with girls, some of them looked like in their twenties but most of them were just minors. Their eyes were dead. In this situation, it was either from being violated or raped repeatedly, or both.

He could screaming and wailing from somewhere, but with the sound of the thunderstorm brewing, he could just pass it as his illusion.

They took him to the big tent.

The inside didn't match the poor condition of outside this tent. The big tent was lavished exaggeratedly with riches and expensive furnitures. Music played by doll-like girls filled the tent. The men there all looked like a classic, uncultured bandit with outrageously big muscles and wild looks. A typical brawn without brain. All of them were drinking and laughing, some were busy raping the motionless girls in lust-filled stupor. Serving them were skinny girls with cloth barely covered anything. Like the girls outside, their eyes had also lost their light, dead.

"A guest!" A loud voice exclaimed.

A big man with grossly huge muscles approached him while clapping his hands. His hair was a short sandy blond and had a three claw-like scar in one cheek. Naruto supposed that he was the leader of the bandit.

"What're you doin' to our valued customer" He glared at his subordinates who captured him. "Release him! You've got something better to do like training those skanks outside!"

"With pleasure, boss." They exited, grinning with extreme relish.

Turning to Naruto, the leader gave him a friendly smile "Come, come... let me show you our product"

He clapped his again once more, this time the music changes to a more festive-like and everyone around cheering loudly.

Naruto now noticed there was a stand in the middle of the tent and two erected high poles where a rope bridged the two of them for a ropewalk, it was just like in the circus. Then a girl barely reached her ten climbed up the pole soullessly like a doll and readied to do the walk, without even a stick for balancing or any safety net.

"Look, look... here it goes" The leader said to him excitedly.

The girl started to thread the rope. The music turned into a suspense-filled note, the drum was hit faster with every time she step forward. Her little body staggered to the left and to the right then she fell. Her head smashed into the ground, her blood and brain were splattered everywhere, everyone around him cheered and clapped.

"Ahahaha... Humans just can't fly, can they! Hahaha! Next!"

This time it was a knife throwing event. Twin girls came up on the stage. One girl tied her sister onto a round board, and then she picked up the knife and threw it. It hit the sister's stomach. And she threw it again, now it pierced her sister's arm. And she threw it another, now it punctured her sister's chest.

Everyone clapped wildly with each hits, watching as the girl was slowly killing her own twin sister gleefully.

"See, how obedient our girls are. They make a pretty good slave, don't they?" The leader grinned at him. But he stiffened when he saw a tear dropping down from the girl's eyes.

"You two!" He barked sharply at the men near the stage "Bring her down and teach her a lesson!"

The men dragged her down the stage, and proceed to tear off her cloth, then beating and raping her at the corner of the tent. Another grunt take board with the girl off the stage.

"She is just a new product, so she hasn't been remodeled completely yet. I'll give you a discount for witnessing something like that." He said to Naruto in fake apologetic tone.

Naruto just looked at him before... "Fu-AHAHAHAHA!"

He got it now. All the missing persons, the unsolvable cases, all the other mysterious things regarding this forbidden region had been solved. While there were some instances where the puzzle didn't match its place but the truth was here, in front of his face. The rumor of a demon was actually just a meager band of bandit and a slave trader.

"Ha..ha..." He lost his breath from the laughter.

Did this mean this slave trader have pissed off his client somehow? Perhaps by competing with their human trafficking business?

If this was what that woman meant, all the talk about knowing what he wanted was just a big fat lie. At first he didn't believe it, but this was what she actually proposed to pass his time.

He just couldn't believe it! Did she think he was a garbage man or something?

He got to complain to her next time and ask huge money for wasting his precious time. Now he could pretend he was doing a community service.

Naruto then looked up at the leader, his face drained from all emotion as if the previous laughter was just an illusion "Congratulations, you just sealed your fate sooner than I planned out to be."

It was the bandit's turn to laugh.

"What can one person do?" The boss condescended him haughtily. "Tell him, boys. Who am I?"

His grunts had stood behind their leader and begin to sang raucously praise to the boss "The boss is a monster, he can kill 5 jounins just by himself!"

"Yeah! He is an S-rank missing-nin. What can a scrawny punk like you do! Hahaha!"

"You hear them" The leader looked at the blond. "That's right. I am the Uzumaki Naruto. When my prey hear my name, it's already too late for them. Curse your bad luck, boy!"

"AHAHAHAHAHA!" Another round of boisterous laughter.

Naruto stood there, looking unimpressed.

"What's the matter, pretty boy? Too 'fraid to talk? Hahaha! Now that you're not a customer, you have two choices left; either being chopped into a tiny pieces your momma' won't recognize anymore, or I can sell you to a rich, old lady to be used as their boy toys. A pretty face like yours could sell for quiet a fortune."

"Hnn." Naruto grunted in displeasure. "Are you done talking?"

"You choose death then." The supposed 'Naruto' made an exaggerate movement of handseals "Fuuton: Daitoppa!"

As the air distorted, the gang leader released a blast of wind from his mouth. The missing-nin just stood and watched the incoming blast emotionlessly, letting the attack hit him without lifting even a finger to fend it off.

BOOM!

The dust and smoke scattered inside the tent, screening the vision of everyone in it.

"Hahaha! That's what you got for challenging Naruto-sama!"

"YEAH!"

The merry mood of the bandit soddened when a bone-chilling tone spoke.

"Is that it? Is this the extend of power of the Uzumaki Naruto. The man that was rumored to be the Lord of Wind who could command the wind as he pleases? Is that what the S-class criminal really can do?"

"You're a dead meat, boy!" The gang leader made another handseals "Fuuton: Daitoppa!"

Another blast of him was sent in his direction, creating a large explosion as it hit.

The smoke finally cleared, the huge man expected to see a large chunk of meat splattered on the floor but instead...

His eyes widened in fear, the man who supposedly dead after getting hit point-blank by his technique, still alive, breathing and standing there, looking unfazed. There's not even a single evidence that his technique hit even though they were supposed to hit, not even his cloth was tattered by the blast.

"H-how?"

"It's simple." Naruto walked forward from the gust of dust. "A servant can't hurt its master, can they? And when you use wind jutsu, you have to use it like this."

Pointing his finger to the high pole, he lazily said as if commanding. "Fuuton: Kamaitachi."

Bam!

Not even half a second later, the pole fell down, as though it had being sliced down by a katana.

"See?" Naruto shifted his eyes to the bandit's boss.

"I-impossible! Fuuton: Kamaitachi is a technique for a fan user. You can't use it without a tool to make the whirlwind, and you're not even making a handseal!"

"Like I said before, they said Uzumaki Naruto has been so good with wind jutsu, he doesn't need any handseals to use them, and it's only natural for me not to use a handseal for a technique below A-rank."

The leader's eyes widened if it was humanely possible "N-no, y-you can't be..."

"Ah, I haven't introduce myself, have I? The name is Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet you, Naruto-_sama._"

"Hiiii!" The bandit step backward "K-kill him! Kill him! Attack!"

"Uwaah!" In the midst of his frantic order, he fell down as he slipped on something. His hand touched something thick and wet, the thing that had caused him slipped off "W,what the-"

His blood curdle at what the water turned out to be and the thing that had spilled it out.

"Who're you giving your order to?" Naruto tilted his head, confused "Those pieces of meats?"

"WAAAAAA!"

There were at least 30 of his subordinates in the tent, but what he saw couldn't be call a human anymore, not even calling them death bodies could describe what they had became. His men had been chopped into pieces, littering the floor with tiny chunks and bits. The expensive carpet was now being painted crimson by the pool of human's blood.

"M-Monster..." He moved backward, trembling with absolute horror "G-get away from me!"

Naruto grinned as he walked slowly towards him "Me? Monster? I thought you are the monster. I'm just a nice guy who is now in the middle of doing community service."

The music was still played by the girls as they were unfazed by carnage in front of them. The festive-like music was now sounded like the voice of the dead to the bandit.

"WaaaaAA!" He tried to stand up and run but slipped down again. "F-forgive me! P-please! I-I promise I won't d-do bad things anymore! P-please"

"Ahahahaha!" Naruto laughed mockingly. "As if human could change that easily. Now..." The blond looked at the trembling man on the floor.

"Kneel." The voice that Naruto let out surprised the bandit, not because of how cold it was but because of his body, without his permission, followed the order. Before he knew it, the huge man had kneeled before this monster.

"No need to be surprised. A weakling like you never had a choice to reject my command. Now, you'll show me how human flies."

"W-what?" The bafflement in his voice showed that he didn't register his command but his body understood. Standing up, the bandit walked to the high pole and climbed it. "S-stop!" He begged, to the monster and to his body. Finally, he reached the top.

Naruto clapped his hands "Begin."

"Uaaaahhhh!" The huge man jumped from the pole and dropped like a fly, his head smashed into the floor, an instant death.

"Ck, you're right, humans really couldn't fly. Not like you can hear me anymore." The renegade blond sighed, then he looked around specifically to the girls who still did what they had been ordered to, some were still playing the music while other just stand like corpses, offering alcoholic beverages. "Now what to do?"

He approached the girl who did a throwing-knife with her own sister. He picked her up by her neck and looked into her eyes. "Girl, do you fear death?"

No answer.

It was really foolish of him to expect her to answer his question. A dead man told nothing, they said. It was true. The girls had been death for a long time, their mind had been crushed and their will to live had been shattered. A person with no will and heart was no better than a corpse. The girls here was just a soulless doll, a former shell of a human being. They were no better than a living zombie, begging to be given an eternal peace.

The pity Naruto felt wasn't because of their condition and the torture they had gone through, but because he understood them.

"Then I shall grant your dearest wish." Naruto snapped her neck, giving her an escape from this injustice world, a pitiful wish the girl must had been dearly wished and begged for.

His clones materialized in front of each girls inside the tent and proceeded to exact act as their master; killing them, before poofing away.

The thunder crackled in the background, blinding Samui for a moment as she flapped the entrance of the tent open. She was just in time to watch him breaking a girl's neck, and dropped her onto the ground.

He then turned to her, azure eyes devoid of anything.

"Hey, what's happening?" The missing-nin said, as if nothing happened "You're good, you know that. I didn't even realize you have tag me with a tracking seal until you've entered this camp."

The inside of the tent was like a slaughterhouse, bloods were everywhere and the stinking smell of it permeated in the air.

Having slaughter everyone in there, he stood in the middle of the bloodbath as though it was simply an everyday chore to him. Not even a shred of remorse even though he just murdered those innocent girls.

"You damned MONSTER!"

With that condemning cry, Samui launched 3 kunai, and sped to his direction, aiming her katana to his chest.

He didn't move an inch.

CLANG!

Her kunai and sword stopped just an inch from him.

"Fuuton: Fu-Ou no Kekkai or you could call it the Barrier of the Wind King. It's a technique I created based on the automatic protection of Subaku no Gaara's sand. The divine barrier which protects its master at all cost. Don't think this time will be the same like that Water temple now that I can use my technique freely.."

Samui quickly jumped back. "The same to you. Allow me test your new technique then"

She casted away her katana, causing him to recoil for a bit.

Why would a kenjutsu specialist throw away her weapon? His question was answered immediately when a lightning crackled in her palm. The ball of lightning formed into a katana, looking like an ordinary one, with a dignity and beauty he couldn't describe.

"My clan technique. Raiton no Yaiba."

The sword of lightning. As soon as she announced its name, she disappeared.

Naruto looked around, trying to capture her presence. Then, he stopped at one particular direction, pointing at it. "Fuuton: Kaze no yaiba."

Five invisibles slash of long swords sped towards there.

Samui dodged most of them and blocked the rest with her sword, it supposed to be unblockable but as her sword made out of pure chakra, it clashed.

Without taking an air, she immediately spun around, swing her katana and was met with the Naruto's rasengan, canceling each other's attack.

BOOM!

"Fuuton: Reppushou" A strong gust of wind blew her backwards, in the midst of her flying, she slashed her katana in the air.

"Raikiri!" A golden, lightning cut darted to him as if cutting even the air it passed.

"What?" Widening his eyes in surprise, Naruto dodged. He didn't believe it at first but, as if cutting a paper, his wind barrier, that could even deflect a B-rank technique, was ripped apart by the speeding, golden line, proving the name 'Raikiri' wasn't just a bluff.

It would definitely split him into two if he hadn't dodge it in time.

Breathing out, Naruto twisted his body back, as though he was about to throw a lance, then...

"Fuuton: Kami kaze!" He threw it.

The divine lance created from pure chakra cut through the air with amazing speed, aiming to the flying blond.

"Raiton: Raigeki no yoroi!"

Shouting name of her technique, yellow, electricity immediately crackled around her body, materializing into a lightning armor just in time as the lance of wind pierced her.

BOOM!

The explosion from the clashing of both technique unfazed her, landing on the ground, she quickly turned to offense, making a one-handseal movement. "Raiton: Raikyu" She threw a few of lightning ball to him.

The golden bullets darted, however...

Naruto was prepared for such an attack and strike both his palms onto the ground. "Doton: Doroku Gaeshi!"

A large wall of earth ascended.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

The sound of exploding bullets, echoing in the tent.

"You're surprised I can use jutsu beside fuuton, huh?" While yelling that, Naruto made a blurring handseals, "Katon: Karyu endan!"

Samui only dodged the stream of fire from his mouth with elegance as reply.

The fire hit the tent, beginning to paint it with hot crimson.

"Gotcha!" Naruto grinned as he stabbed her with a kunai.

"Not really."

Her voice came into his ears, as her clone he stabbed disappeared. The surprise didn't last long when a cold metal sliced through his neck.

Samui made a quick handseal, "Raiton: Raijingu Sanda" An electric field covered her body like a spider web.

It was a follow-up reaction, seeing the one she killed was also a kagebunshin.

Soon after, just like her cold calculation, a kunai stabbed through pass that golden web, and immediately countered by the channeling strike of electricity.

"Guahhh!" Naruto yelled in pain as he forced to move back.

The fire which was burning the tent started to take its effect. The structure that supported the tent started to fall apart. There was no doubt that the tent would collapse any time soon. Sensing this, Naruto ran outside, and expected she followed. A few golden lines, from her Raikiri, cut the air, speeding to his direction. Spinning around, he made a handseals "Fuuton: Tatsuno Ooshigoto" Taking advantage of the raging storm outside, and used the A-rank technique to mold the violent wind into a few cutting tornados.

Wind and thunder clashed.

BOOM!

Both attacks met in the mid-air before reaching their intending targets, blasting a huge explosion.

The dust and sand that veiling them dwindled down.

But even with low visibility, both shinobi, without letting their body loosened up even for a moment, stared down at each other, waiting for the right moment to move.

Behind them, the big tent had collapse, taken down by the fire and the dark clouds had started to reach its peak, the heavy storm could began at any moment. The cold drizzle that hit their faces felt like piercing into their bones.

In that tense moment, suddenly the ground trembled.

The shaking grew bit by bit, started as just a small vibrate until it grew into almost a small earthquake. But to call it as merely an earthquake was entirely off the mark.

It had a rhythm as if the movement of something created it. Something colossal.

Naruto was wrong. He was forced to admit it.

Now, the puzzle, that had been slightly off, finally fit into their rightful places, materializing into one big picture.

The missing persons, the disappearance of shinobi, the mysterious reason behind the vacating of this region, the hearsay that surrounding it, everything lead him to one answer; a demon.

Naruto and Samui looked at the top of a dune. As a giant, height stood more than 3 meters, stood on it, as if a millenary tree on a solitary island.

Hidden beneath a war helmet with curvy, metal bull horns on both side, was crimson gaze casting over the entire camp.

With constitution that was known to all; a dark armor, darker even than the darkest of night, was carved, all over its framework, with reddish silver, as if set ablaze forever by fire of smithery, as the embellishment, the signature panoply of Land of Fire samurai created from the highest quality of materials, made from the best blacksmiths, no man could ever mistaken the menacing chain mail, protecting its colossal frame, as anything else.

As someone who had the same scent, it was easy for Naruto recognized his kind.

_A monster that had a stench of blood and death. _

Why people in the past called it a demon? He understood it right away.

The cold crawling up his spine was something he had forgotten in a long time, coiling around his body like a snake preying on its prey. It was something akin to fear and anxiety.

But more than the instinctual emotion, his eyes fixed to its blood-colored eyes, felt as if sucking his soul.

"No way." Naruto's lips unconsciously curved up, uneasiness and excitement mixing into one.

The real answer to the existence that had made Land of Water casted away this region had arrived.

The demon had arrived.


End file.
